The Locket
by punkrocker4139
Summary: Who is this girl Gandalf seems so intent to bring on their journey? More to the point, what is she?


Okay so this is a new idea that I just had and I wanted to get the base idea down. It is nowhere near ready for publishing and this is definitely a very, very rough draft but I wanted to see if anyone was interested in the idea. So let me know if you want more.

* * *

There were no screams. No indication that anything was wrong. The only thing that could have possibly given away that something was amiss was the subtle change in the wizards demeanor. What with the dwarves and hobbit too distracted by the thought of the evening meal, no one picked up on it. The wizard, however, stayed intently focused on that which had captivated his attentions. It was only when the wizard stood abrubtly that he gained the attention of his company.

"Gandalf, what is it?" The hobbit looked up from his bowl of stew.

"I... sense something," the wizard, Gandalf, seemed distracted.

"What is it?" The dark haired dwarf asked gruffly.

Gandalf ignored him and moved towards the tree line.

"You two, watch the camp. The rest of you follow me," the dark haired dwarf turned and quickly strode into the forest after his wizard companion.

The remaining dwarves exchanged glances before following their leaders orders.

The hobbit, who had not been addressed by said leader, hesitated only a moment before sitting at the fireside by his two companion dwarves. He would put off the nasty business of confrontation for as long as possible, thank you very much.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the forest, 11 dwarves stalked carefully behind the tall wizard. Only when the wizard came to a sudden halt several paces away from their camp did they stop. The leader of these dwarves noticed nothing out of the ordinary.

"What is the meaning of this, Gandalf?" He demanded.

Gandalf said nothing, only dropped to his knees. It was then that the dark haired dwarf noticed what was on the ground.

"Who is she?" He asked the wizard quietly.

"What is it uncle?" One of the other dwarves called from the back of the group.

The dark haired leader shushed him and crouched next to the wizard.

The object of both males attentions was a small female form. She lacked any article of clothing save a small locket hung around her neck. The dark haired dwarf would have thought her a child if it weren't for the clear womanly curves she possessed. A shock of long, dark hair covered her face. He reached forward to remove the hair from her face when the wizard shot his staff out, blocking his arm.

"Don't," whispered Gandalf. His eyes were locked fixedly on the locket.

He picked it up gently, turning it over in his hands.

"It cannot be," he mumbled.

"What is the meaning of this?" The dark haired leader asked again.

Gandalf ignored him and gently removed the hair from the young womans face. Dark hair surrounded a pale face. Her skin almost resonated a fair glow in the moonlight. Long, dark lashes rested againstn a pair of high cheekbones. The leader of the dwarves noticed a pair of pointed ears beneath her hair.

"An elf?" He asked, confusion lacing his tone. He'd never seen an elf like her before.

"Quick, a cloak," Gandalf said, once again ignoring the dwarf.

One of the dwarves immediately behind the leader produced his cloak. Gandalf threw the cloak over the girl.

"She must come with us. We must deliver her to Lord Elrond," he said, mostly speaking to himself.

"Now hold on just one moment. I already told you-"

The leader stopped suddenly as the womans eyes flew open. The other dwarves gasped as she suddenly sat up. The cloak fell to her waist as her bright green eyes scanned her surroundings. She peered at the dwarves curiously before her eyes landed on the wizard.

"Mithandir_,_" she said suddenly, as if she couldn't believe her eyes.

"Yes. Although I do not know what I should call you, " he said gently in elvish.

"I am called Calliope. Mithandir, you will bring me where I must go?" She asked in elvish, her innocent green eyes staring into his blue ones.

"Where is it that you need to go?" He asked gently.

"Imladris. I know not why, only that I must get there, " she said.

The dwarves, who did not understand the language the wizard and the girl spoke, peered on in confusion.

"What is she? Who is she?" The dark haired leader asked.

"She is a very important commodity. She must come with us. She will be very useful on our journey," Gandalf replied in the common tongue, deciding for the moment to leave out where she needed to go. He'd cross that bridge when he got to it.

"Master Thorin, please," Gandalf said, seeing the look of objection on the dwarf leaders face, "I must have your explicit trust in me on this. I cannot tell you how, or why, at this point, but she must come with us."

The dwarf leader, Thorin, hesitated for a moment, a look of severe distrust on his face as he observed the girl. She stared back impassively, obviously not understanding their language, but looking as if she still knew what they were discussing.

"She is your responsibility. I will not have my company sacrificing themselves for her. She stays out of the way," Thorin finally said.

Gandalf took a moment to look affronted that the dwarf would give him orders, but decided not to say anything, pleased that he was getting his way anyway.

"Can we get her something else to wear? She's a little... distracting," one of the other dwarves said, averting his eyes to the best of his abilities.

"Come Calliope, I'm sure we can find something for you. Perhaps the master hobbit has something to your size," Gandalf said in elvish, helping her to her feet, pulling the cloak tighter around her shoulders.

"I won't have you speaking in that secret language either. She speaks common tongue, or she does not speak," Thorin said gruffly.

"She does not understand. Perhaps Master Baggins can assist us there," Gandalf responded, understanding Thorin's mistrust and deciding to humor him.

"Good. He will finally be of some use," Thorin said, turning and walking away, the rest of his company following him.

Gandalf shook his head before beckoning Calliope to follow him


End file.
